Baby's First Words
by broadwaybabies
Summary: This is a story that Kat commissioned me to do. It's about what would have happened if Cato and Clove had survived the Hunger Games with Katniss and Peeta...and then had a kid. Enjoy! -Rachel


**Baby's First Words**

Alex's persistent crying started again, piercing the door of the bedroom that I shared with Cato. "Ugh," I groaned. I walked out into the hall, leaning on the doorway. "CATO!" I shouted. "YOUR CHILD IS CRYING AGAIN!"

My husband dragged himself out of the bathroom. "Why is he always MY child when he's crying?"

I gave him the eye. "Because you neglected him for the first six months of his life."

Cato facepalmed himself. "Good point," he said. "I'll go call Katniss…" I grabbed his arm. "No!" I shouted over Alex's cries. "I wanna do it by myself this time."

Cato gave me a look. "Seriously?"

I let go of his arm, eyeing him again. "Just get the blanket," I muttered. Cato glanced around, not moving. "And the blanket is in the….?"

"Bathroom linen closet, moron."

He grabbed the small yellow baby blanket from the closet. "Shh, Alex.." he whispered. "Daddy's here…"

I made a realization a moment too late as he started towards Alex's room. "Be careful, baby!" I said. "The door is still…"

Too late. My husband slammed right into the door of the nursery. I stifled a small laugh as I said, "…locked."

Cato gave me a death glare as he rubbed his forehead. "Why in HELL did you lock the door?"

I blushed. "I don't know!" I said. "I'm paranoid." The death glare ceased. "Well," Cato said. "I think you can stop being paranoid about the door." HE quickly unlocked it and walked inside.

Before I could move, a high-pitched shriek came from inside the nursery, and I flinched. The baby blanket flew out of the room, and Cato shouted, "Your turn!"

I facepalmed myself. "Let me show you." I walked into the nursery, muttering under my breath. "Such a moron….But he's my moron."

Alex screamed again as I picked the blanket up. "Shh, baby," I cooed, wrapping the blanket around him. "It'll be okay." My son's crying ceased, and I noticed Cato smiling out of the corner of my eye.

"Can I hold him?" he asked. I smiled. "Of course! He's your son!" As Cato picked Alex up, I walked over to the phone receiver hung on the wall, and picked it up.

As the dial tone played in my ear, I could hear Cato muttering to the baby. "You're so adorable! Yes you are!" I stifled a laugh as the person on the other end of the line picked up.

"KATNISS! I DID IT!" I jumped a little as I squealed into the phone. My good friend groaned in sleepiness. "Did what?" she asked. "It's…..3:45!"

I could hear Peeta in the background, groaning. "Again?" he muttered. "Will I ever get a full night's sleep?" A muffled whacking sound followed his outburst. "Shut up!" Katniss shouted. She turned back to the receiver. "What did you do, Clove?"

"I DID IT!" I shouted again. "ALEX STOPPED CRYING!"

Katniss laughed. "Good for you!"

Cato whooped. "LET'S CELEBRATE! BREAK OUT THE APPLE JUICE!"

Katniss and I busted into hysterical laughter. I couldn't breathe.

"You guys should come over to celebrate!" I said, jumping again.

Between fits of laughter, I heard Katniss say, "Seriously? At 4 am?" Cato whooped again. "Yeah!"

Peeta groaned again in the background. "Noooooo!" he shouted. "I'm tired!"

More muffled whacking sounds. "Shut UP!" I stifled another laugh. "Are you guys gonna come over or not?" I asked.

Katniss sighed. "Sure."

I heard Alex laugh in Cato's arms, and I cheered. "Yaaaaay!" Katniss giggled. "We'll be there soon." The dial tone came back, signaling that she had hung up. I put down the phone, and started dancing. "YES!"

Alex laughed again. Cato cheered. "We're no longer dysfunctional!"

I fist-pumped. "No more stress!

"No more knife-throwing!"

My dancing ceased, replaced by a death glare. Cato stopped smiling. "What?"

"Forget about it."

Alex stopped laughing, and started to mumble nonsense. Cato smiled again. "He's talking!" he shouted. "He's talking, Clove!"

I rolled my eyes. "It's nonsense, sweetie. Babies do that." Cato gave me a poker face. "Oh."

I laughed. "But it's a good sign! That means he'll probably start to talk soon." Cato fist-pumped. "Yaaaaay!"

I rolled my eyes again. "You're such an overgrown child."

"And proud of it."

At once, we could hear knocking on our front door. It was Katniss.

"I'll get it!" Cato handed Alex to me, and ran downstairs. When he was in my arms, my son's mumbling became louder.

"Are you trying to tell me something, Xander?" I tickled his stomach. "Are you?"

In a sudden fit of activity, Xander's noises started to become somewhat distinguishable. I shouted for my husband. "CATO!"

He immediately came running up the stairs, accompanied by Katniss, and a somewhat reluctant Peeta. "What?"

I smiled. "I think he's talking!"

Katniss listened to Alex's outbursts. "I think he is!"

All at once, my baby started to say the same muddled word over and over again. A puzzled look crossed Peeta's face. "Is he saying 'catnip'?"

I listened closely to my son. "No." I shot another death glare across the room.

Alex was now shouting his new, first word: "Katniss! Katniss!"

More death glares. Peeta gasped. "Oh, snap!" I exploded.

"KAAAAATTTTNIIIIISSSSS!"

**TO BE CONTINUED**


End file.
